D. The first 5 notes of the minor scale, starting on 6600 Hz. It is much more difficult to tell major from minor in this high frequency range, and most people cannot perform this task accurately; see Oxenham et al. (2011). [minor_high.wav]

II. B.2. The pitch of complex tones.

The pitch of the missing fundamental.

A. A complex tone with a fundamental frequency (F0) of 200 Hz is played, with the first 10 harmonics present. [f0_200_full.wav]

B. The same complex tone is played, but with the F0 itself removed, so that only harmonics 2-10 are present. The pitch should be same, even though the timbre changes somewhat. [f0_200_missing.wav]

Brightness changes through changes in spectral content.

A. A complex tone with an F0 of 220 Hz is played, with harmonics 1-5 present. [complex220_lp.wav]

B. A complex tone with an F0 of 220 Hz is played, with harmonics 10-14 present. The timbre is now brighter, and the pitch salience is weaker, but the pitch remains about the same. [complex220_hp_new-1.wav]

III.D. Consonance and dissonance

Effects of inharmonicity and acoustic beats on perceived consonance and dissonance*

A musical interval of a perfect 5th [sax_fifth.wav] is generally considered more consonant or pleasing than an interval of a minor 2nd [sax_min_sec.wav]. Diagnostic laboratory stimuli were used to separate the effects of inharmonicity from the roughness produced by acoustic beats. To investigate inharmonicity, tones, which were spaced far enough apart to avoid beats, were placed in either harmonic [harm_stim1.wav] or inharmonic [inharm_stim4.wav] relation to each other. To investigate acoustic beats, the two tones were played either to the same ear [diot_high_int.wav] or to opposite ears [dich_high_int.wav]. In the case of opposite ears, acoustic beats are much less salient. It was found that ratings of inharmonicity provided a better predictor of musical consonance or dissonance than did ratings of beats; see McDermott et al. (2010). Demonstrations provided by Dr. Josh McDermott.